It has been seven years since Karnataka received a Ranji Trophy title. The quest for champion standing begins afresh as soon as once more, with Karnataka taking up Services within the match opener on the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium right here on Tuesday.
This would be the first time that Karnataka and Services face one another within the Ranji Trophy.
Karnataka has slipped within the knockout phases within the final three seasons. After exiting within the semifinals twice, Karnataka was proven the door by Uttar Pradesh within the quarterfinal final season.
In skipper Mayank Agarwal, Devdutt Padikkal, R. Samarth and Manish Pandey, Karnataka boasts of a settled batting line-up. Nikin Jose, Karnataka’s highest run-scorer within the current Vijay Hazare Trophy, may make his red-ball debut.
Mayank takes over captaincy duties from Pandey. On Karnataka’s mighty legacy within the Ranji Trophy, Mayank stated, “We have spoken about it. But we’ve realised over the years that if we keep thinking about winning, winning, winning, it just will not happen. We are hungry, we do want to win, but we have to make a plan, be adaptable and disciplined. If we can do that, with the skillsets we have, the results will take care of itself. We are determined to win, there are no two ways about it. We want to win trophies for Karnataka.”
Mayank is eager to create a profitable group surroundings, just like the one seen when Karnataka dominated the home scene lower than a decade in the past.
“We have to keep encouraging them (youngsters), and create a good environment for them to flourish. Nikin did very well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. We want him to continue that form. As a team, we want to have an atmosphere where they can come, learn, execute, flourish, put up match-winning performances for Karnataka and play for the country. The environment we want to create in the team is one of wanting to win trophies, and we’re hungry for it,” Mayank stated.